A1 Suffixes 5 min read Leicht

Possessive Suffix: 3rd Person Plural (-leri)

Attach -ları or -leri to a noun to show it belongs to a group of people ('them').
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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use the suffix '-leri' or '-ları' to show that something belongs to 'them' (plural owners).

  • Use '-leri' if the last vowel is e, i, ö, ü (e.g., 'evleri' - their house).
  • Use '-ları' if the last vowel is a, ı, o, u (e.g., 'arabaları' - their car).
  • It attaches directly to the noun root after any plural '-ler/-lar' suffix if present.
Noun + (vowel harmony) + leri/ları = Their Noun

Overview

Imagine you are at a crowded cafe in Istanbul. You see a group of friends sharing a large pizza. You want to talk about their pizza or their table.
In Turkish, we don't use a separate word like 'their' in front of nouns. Instead, we attach a special tag to the end of the word. This tag is the 3rd person plural possessive suffix.
It tells everyone that something belongs to 'them' (onlar). It is a simple but powerful tool for your daily conversations. You will use it to talk about families, belongings, and even abstract ideas.
Think of it as a way to group owners together. It makes your Turkish sound natural and fluid.

How This Grammar Works

Turkish loves suffixes. We call it an 'agglutinative' language. This means we glue pieces together to build meaning.
For 'their,' we use two main versions: -leri and -ları. You pick one based on the vowels in the word. This is called vowel harmony.
It's like matching your socks to your outfit. Once you learn the rhythm, it becomes second nature. You attach these suffixes directly to the noun.
You don't need to add extra 'buffer' letters like you do with singular suffixes. It’s actually simpler than the singular version! Even native speakers enjoy how rhythmic these suffixes sound.

Formation Pattern

1
Creating this suffix follows a very clear 2-way vowel harmony rule. Here is how you do it step by step:
2
Look at the very last vowel in your noun.
3
If the last vowel is a, ı, o, or u, add -ları.
4
If the last vowel is e, i, ö, or ü, add -leri.
5
Attach the suffix directly to the end of the word.
6
Let's look at some quick examples. Take the word araba (car). The last vowel is 'a'. So, it becomes arabaları (their car). Now take ev (house). The vowel is 'e'. It becomes evleri (their house). It works like a charm every time. No exceptions for words ending in vowels either! Just stick it on and you're good to go.

When To Use It

Use this suffix whenever you want to show ownership by a group. This is perfect for real-world scenarios. Imagine you are asking for directions to a couple's house.
You would ask about evleri (their house). Or perhaps you are at a job interview. You might talk about hedefleri (their goals) regarding a company.
Use it for family members, like çocukları (their children). Use it for physical objects, like anahtarları (their keys). It is also great for talking about groups of people you don't know well.
It keeps your sentences clear. It shows exactly who owns what without any confusion.

When Not To Use It

There is a sneaky rule in Turkish. If you already mentioned the owners with a plural noun, you can skip the plural part of the suffix. For example, if you say Öğrencilerin kitabı, it means 'the students' book.' You used a singular suffix -ı because öğrenciler is already plural.
Using -ları there is okay, but it can feel a bit heavy. Think of it like a grammar traffic light. If the subject is already plural, the suffix can stay 'green' (singular).
Also, don't use this for 'your' or 'my.' It is strictly for 'them.' Mixing these up is a classic rookie mistake. Keep it focused on the third person group.

Common Mistakes

One big mistake is mixing up -lar (just plural) and -ları (their). Kitaplar means 'books.' Kitapları means 'their book' or 'their books.' That little 'ı' at the end changes everything! Another mistake is ignoring vowel harmony. Saying evları instead of evleri sounds very strange to a Turkish ear. It’s like singing a song out of tune. Also, some people try to add an 's' buffer, like arabasıları. This is incorrect. The plural possessive never needs that 's'. Just keep it simple: arabaları. Yes, even learners who have studied for months still trip over this sometimes!

Contrast With Similar Patterns

Let’s compare this to the 3rd person singular (-ı, -i, -u, -ü). For 'his car,' we say onun arabası. Notice the 's' buffer.
For 'their car,' we say onların arabaları. No 's' buffer here! Also, notice that -ları can be ambiguous.
Onların evleri can mean 'their house' (one house for all) or 'their houses' (many houses). Usually, the context of your conversation will clear this up. If you are talking about a married couple, it’s probably one house.
If you are talking about neighbors, it might be many. Turkish relies on you and your listener being on the same page.

Quick FAQ

Q

Do I always have to use the word onların?

No! The suffix -leri already tells us the owner is 'them.'

Q

Can this suffix mean 'his' or 'her' too?

Only if the word is already plural, like onun kedi-ler-i. But usually, it means 'their.'

Q

Does it change if the word ends in a consonant?

No, the rule stays the same. Just follow the vowel harmony.

Q

Is this used in formal Turkish?

Absolutely. It is used in everything from text messages to legal documents.

Possessive Suffix Table

Noun Last Vowel Suffix Result
Ev
e
-leri
Evleri
Araba
a
-ları
Arabaları
Kedi
i
-leri
Kedileri
Okul
u
-ları
Okulları
Göz
ö
-leri
Gözleri
Top
o
-ları
Topları

Meanings

This suffix indicates possession by a third-person plural entity (they/them).

1

Possession

Indicates ownership by a group.

“Onların evleri büyük.”

“Çocukların oyuncakları burada.”

2

Association

Indicates something associated with a group.

“Onların fikirleri çok ilginç.”

“Öğrencilerin kitapları masada.”

Reference Table

Reference table for Possessive Suffix: 3rd Person Plural (-leri)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Noun + leri/ları
Evleri
Plural Owner
Noun + leri/ları
Onların evleri
With Plural Noun
Noun + ler + leri/ları
Evleri (their houses)
Question
Noun + leri/ları + mı?
Evleri mi?
Negative
N/A
N/A

Formalitätsspektrum

Formell
Evleri buradadır.

Evleri buradadır. (Giving directions)

Neutral
Evleri burada.

Evleri burada. (Giving directions)

Informell
Evleri burada ya.

Evleri burada ya. (Giving directions)

Umgangssprache
Evleri şurada işte.

Evleri şurada işte. (Giving directions)

Possessive Logic

Owner: They

Vowel Group 1

  • e, i, ö, ü Use -leri

Vowel Group 2

  • a, ı, o, u Use -ları
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Beispiele nach Niveau

1

Onların evleri büyük.

Their house is big.

2

Onların arabaları yeni.

Their car is new.

1

Öğrencilerin kitapları masada.

The students' books are on the table.

2

Çocukların oyuncakları burada.

The children's toys are here.

1

Şirketlerin kuralları çok katı.

The companies' rules are very strict.

2

Onların fikirleri projeye çok katkı sağladı.

Their ideas contributed a lot to the project.

1

Bu sanatçıların eserleri dünya çapında tanınıyor.

These artists' works are known worldwide.

2

Ülkelerin ekonomileri birbirine bağlı.

Countries' economies are interconnected.

1

Yazarların üslupları, dönemlerinin özelliklerini yansıtır.

The authors' styles reflect the characteristics of their eras.

2

Kurumların stratejileri uzun vadeli planlara dayanır.

Institutions' strategies are based on long-term plans.

1

Toplumların kültürel kodları, dillerinin derinliklerinde gizlidir.

Societies' cultural codes are hidden in the depths of their languages.

2

Bu araştırmacıların bulguları, literatürdeki boşluğu dolduruyor.

These researchers' findings fill the gap in the literature.

Leicht verwechselbar

Possessive Suffix: 3rd Person Plural (-leri) vs. Plural Suffix (-ler/-lar)

Learners think -leri is just the plural suffix.

Possessive Suffix: 3rd Person Plural (-leri) vs. 3rd Person Singular (-si/-sı)

Confusing singular owner with plural owner.

Possessive Suffix: 3rd Person Plural (-leri) vs. Genitive Case (-in/-ın)

Confusing the possessor marker with the possessive suffix.

Häufige Fehler

✗

evları

✓

evleri

Wrong vowel harmony.
✗

onların evler

✓

onların evleri

Missing possessive suffix.
✗

arabası

✓

arabaları

Confusing 3rd person singular with plural.
✗

onların evleri-ler

✓

onların evleri

Redundant plural marking.
✗

kedi-ları

✓

kedileri

Vowel harmony error.
✗

okul-leri

✓

okulları

Vowel harmony error.
✗

onların fikirler

✓

onların fikirleri

Missing possessive suffix.
✗

şirket-ları

✓

şirketleri

Vowel harmony error.
✗

kitaplar-ları

✓

kitapları

Redundant plural.
✗

araştırmacıların bulgular

✓

araştırmacıların bulguları

Missing possessive suffix.
✗

üslup-leri

✓

üslupları

Vowel harmony error.
✗

strateji-ları

✓

stratejileri

Vowel harmony error.

Satzmuster

Onların ___ çok güzel.

___ kitapları masada.

Onların ___ hakkında ne düşünüyorsun?

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Evleri nerede?

Business very common

Projeleri onaylandı.

Social Media common

Onların fotoğrafları harika!

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💡

Context is King

Remember that -leri can mean one thing owned by them or many things owned by them. Usually, the conversation makes it clear!
⚠️

No 'S' for Plurals

Don't use the 's' buffer (like in 'arabası') when using the plural suffix. It's just 'arabaları', even though it ends in a vowel.
🎯

Dropping 'Onların'

In daily speech, Turks often drop the word 'onların' because the suffix already gives the meaning. It makes you sound more like a local!
💬

Family Focus

When talking about a family's home, Turks almost always use -leri/-ları even if only one person is present, to show respect to the whole household.

Smart Tips

Look at the last vowel of the noun.

ev-ları → ev-leri

Ensure the suffix matches the noun.

şirket-ları → şirketleri

Focus on the last vowel.

araba-leri → arabaları

Aussprache

ev-le-ri, a-ra-ba-la-rı

Vowel Harmony

Ensure the suffix vowel matches the noun's last vowel.

Statement

Evleri büyük. ↘

Neutral tone.

Einprägen

Eselsbrücke

Think of 'leri' as 'L-E-R-I' (Like Every Real Item) and 'ları' as 'L-A-R-I' (Large And Really Important).

Visuelle Assoziation

Imagine a group of people (they) holding a giant box. If the box has 'e' on it, you stick a label 'leri' on it. If it has 'a', you stick 'ları'.

Rhyme

If the vowel is thin, use -leri within; if the vowel is fat, use -ları at that.

Story

A group of friends (they) bought a house. They put a sign 'Evleri' on the door. Then they bought a car and put 'Arabaları' on the bumper. Now everyone knows it belongs to them.

Word Web

EvleriArabalarıKedileriOkullarıFikirleriKitapları

Herausforderung

Look around your room. Pick 3 items and write down how you would say 'their [item]' in Turkish.

Kulturelle Hinweise

Possessive suffixes are used even for family members, showing close-knit social structures.

In corporate settings, using the correct possessive suffix shows professionalism.

The suffix evolved from ancient Turkic possessive markers.

Gesprächseinstiege

“

Onların evi nerede?

“

Öğrencilerin kitapları nerede?

“

Sence onların fikirleri mantıklı mı?

Tagebuch-Impulse

Describe your friends' house.
Write about your favorite company and their products.
Discuss the goals of your team.

Häufige Fehler

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

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Test Yourself

Fill in the correct suffix.

Onların ev___ büyük.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: leri
Ev ends in e, so use -leri.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Onların arabaları
Requires possessive suffix for plural owner.
Find the error. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Onların evları güzel.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Onların evleri
Evleri is the correct form.
Translate to Turkish. Übersetzung

Their books.

Answer starts with: Kit...

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Kitapları
Kitapları means their books.

Score: /4

Ubungsaufgaben

4 exercises
Fill in the correct suffix.

Onların ev___ büyük.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: leri
Ev ends in e, so use -leri.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Onların arabaları
Requires possessive suffix for plural owner.
Find the error. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Onların evları güzel.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Onların evleri
Evleri is the correct form.
Translate to Turkish. Übersetzung

Their books.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Kitapları
Kitapları means their books.

Score: /4

FAQ (6)

No, you can drop it if the context is clear.

The suffix still depends on the last vowel of the noun.

No, the suffix is the same for both.

Yes, it works for any noun.

It's due to vowel harmony.

Yes, it is standard in all registers.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish partial

su/sus

Turkish is agglutinative; Spanish is not.

French partial

leur/leurs

Turkish uses a suffix.

German partial

ihr/ihre

Turkish uses a suffix.

Japanese partial

kare-ra no

Turkish uses a suffix.

Arabic partial

hum/hunna

Arabic suffix is different for gender.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Connected Grammar

Vowel Harmony

Prerequisite

You cannot form this suffix without it.

Plural Suffix

Similar

Often confused with possessive.

Possessive Suffixes

Builds On

Covers all persons.

Previous
Questioning Existence with 'Var mı?'
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